SC asks liquidator to go ahead with Aamby Valley auction

Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 12

The Supreme Court today asked the official liquidator appointed by it to go ahead with the auction of Sahara Group’s flagship property Aamby Valley near Pune and warned that anybody obstructing the process would be sent to jail for contempt of court.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra took strong exception to SEBI’s allegations against the company of obstructing the auction process.

“If any impediment is caused in the auctioning process by anyone, he shall be liable of contempt of this court and sent to jail,” the Bench said, clarifying that it was not initiating contempt action as of now.

The Bench piqued over the company allegedly obstructing the auction process by writing a letter to the Pune Police raising the issue of law and order at Aamby Valley.

Sahara should not have sent the letter to Pune Police as the auction had been ordered by the top court, the Bench noted.

SEBI alleged that the police had taken custody of the property and no bidder was willing to take part in the auction process.

But the Bench directed the DGP, Maharashtra, to ensure that the property was handed over to the Bombay High Court’s official liquidator within 48 hours.

On behalf of Sahara, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi termed the allegations as “completely wrong” and aimed to prejudice the court.

“No bidder has come...I (group) am not standing in the way. I have not halted anything and have not given property to the police,” Rohatgi said. However, the Bench ordered the liquidator to go ahead with the auctioning process.

SEBI had on Tuesday filed a contempt petition against the Sahara Group accusing it of obstructing the auction of Aamby Valley.